The Appetizer: Truth Be Told

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"Food for the body is not enough, there must be food for the soul. - Dorothy Day "

This doesn’t usually happen.

I am not typically one to feel compelled to write, but as of lately I have had this burning desire to share my very, new journey toward SELF-LOVE.

So why now, you ask? Well, when I created this blog almost two years ago I was in a state of transition. I recently graduated with a bachelor’s degree in nursing, and was preparing to embark upon what I consider to be my “Real adult life”. In this transition period, I had the opportunity to do quite of bit of reflecting, and have come to the realization that I have accomplished a great deal in my short, twenty-four years of life.

Some of these accomplishments include: obtaining a dual bachelors degree, traveling to seven different countries, and recently accepting a full time nursing position. In addition to these resume enhancers, I have been blessed with a very supportive and nurturing network of family and friends that I am forever grateful for. Now, having cooked up this quick, microwave edition of my life, I suppose that from the outside looking in, everything seems pretty good, right ? Well truth be told, it has not been all that bad, except for the fact that I have been missing one little thing - true self-love.

Because of this missing link, I have made some poor life decisions, mainly relationship and situationship related, in pursuit to fill an un-discovered void. Little did I know then, but this void was actually a lack of self-love, which consequently allowed me to entertain people (love interests and friends a like) that truthfully did not deserve the time of day. Let me tell you, the residual effects of a lackluster, self-love can and will put you in a state of physical, mental, and spiritual distress. How do I know? Because I was there not too long ago.

If you are at all familiar with the definition of insanity, then you know it means to repeat the same adverse action over and over again. By definition, I am insane. I was making the same life mistakes over and over again until one day, recently, I had an “Ahh ha” moment. I finally realized that I was going about this whole love, self-respect, self-worth "thing" ALL wrong. I was looking for validation of love from other people, and not from the source itself, God. Basically, I was "Appetizing" myself with the wrong food.

At this point, I knew I had to do something different, and that meant going on a spiritual diet. This diet, consisting of eliminating toxic behavior, and renewing my relationship with myself and God is what I am consuming today. I truly believe that to know God is to know thy self. Once I understood this, things began to change, and the real journey to self-love began.

In my meal prep to an elevated state of self-love, I first had to determine what went wrong? Why do I feel like my self-love skills have been lacking? When did I acquire the wrong recipe of love ?

This exploration calls for a deeper dish, so ladies and gents get your utensils ready!

Always served with Love,

Dri ♥

#lifelessons #growing